MT falls twice in hard-fought weekend

Friday, January 20

Nashville, Tenn.

2 PM

Middle Tennessee

Vanderbilt

1/21/2017 6:25:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Blue Raiders fall to Penn, 5-2

By: @MTAthletics

MT at Vanderbilt box score
MT vs. Penn box score

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee fell twice this weekend to two top men's tennis programs, as Vanderbilt won 4-0 on Friday, followed by a Penn win on Saturday, 5-2.

"The biggest thing we talked about is we have to be more aggressive and confident in the bigger points and not just expect our opponents to miss," MT assistant coach Daniel Leitner said after the two setbacks. "We have to go out there and get it. We can hang in those matches, and it was big for the freshmen to see what matches like these are like."

Vanderbilt won at No. 1 and 3 doubles to take the first point in the match after doubles play.

The top of the singles lineup for Vanderbilt carried the Commodores, as No. 97-ranked singles player Daniel Valent won at No. 1 by a score of 6-1, 6-4, despite a late push from Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore. The Dores took the match at No. 2, 6-0, 6-1, along with Baker Newman clinching the 4-0 win at No. 3 after winning the first set in a tiebreak.

Miguel Negre Fernandez cruised through the first set at No. 4, 6-1, but his match was pushed to a third set before going unfinished. Max Rauch took his first set to a tiebreak at No. 5, but his match was unable to be finished, along with the match at No. 6.

After the Quakers won two of the three doubles matches to get off to an early lead in the Saturday afternoon match, they took four of the six singles matches to make the final score 5-2.

Penn's Kyle Mautner took the match at No. 1, 6-1, 6-1, to extend the Quakers' lead before Rauch put the Blue Raiders on the board with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 triumph at No. 5. Penn won again at the No. 2 spot in a tightly contested battle, but MT held on after Negre Fernandez won 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 on court four.

Luis Morillo Diaz and Gian Issa both saw their matches go to third sets, but the Quakers finished off those close matches to make the final score 5-2, in favor of Penn.

"What we learned from our guys today is that they don't flinch when it goes bad," Leitner added. "A couple of times we got down a break but we came back. If you look at the scoreboard, it wasn't looking great, but we kept battling, and put ourselves in positions to win."

Next on the schedule for MT is a double header on Jan. 28 against George Washington and Alabama A&M.